Just Mets

The Mets have been starved for offense for the better part of three months. They’ve been bludgeoned by devastating injuries in which their captain has played in only eight games, their primary catcher 19 games, their bullpen reshaped and reformed seemingly on a weekly basis, and the rest of their roster serving as a revolving door for minor leaguers to hopelessly provide the help the Mets need.

The result of all of this is a team thriving on the mound but last in the game in team OPS and those pitchers having a higher batting average and slugging percentage than their pinch hitters, and the team is 37-45 in their last 82 games, or since they started the year 13-3.

So when the Mets announced they acquired two major league players in Kelly Johnson and Juan Uribe on Friday night, it almost seemed like the fog had been lifted over the Mets, and they suddenly had legitimate hope.

Why? Because if the Mets score four or more runs in a game, or the league average, they usually win. The 35-5 record when the team scores four or more runs is evident of that.

“We like the fact that it’s sort of a general upgrade of our overall position-player roster,” Sandy Alderson said before Saturday’s 15-2 romp of the Dodgers at Citi Field. “Johnson plays a lot of different positions. Uribe plays a spot where we can use some additional support. And, overall, it raised the quality of our roster. They’re veteran players, so we’re happy to have them.”

By no means can either be considered the savior for the Mets offense. The two of them combined along with Michael Conforto won’t save the season alone. They most definitely need another piece, a significant one at that. They’ll also need Travis d’Arnaud to not only get back, but stay on the field (although Kevin Plawecki has been impressive).

But they’ll help, because they give the manager more tools to work with in-game. And, if Lucas Duda has woken up from his summer slumber, Daniel Murphy rediscovered the stroke he had prior to landing on the disabled list, and the supporting cast of Ruben Tejada and Juan Lagares can do the little things – including playing soundly up the middle – the Mets have a fantastic shot at getting beyond October 4, especially with this pitching staff which truly is championship caliber.

But the Mets need the help of those guys who have been here all year. Terry Collins has warned them they better help, or else they won’t play very much.

“They’ve been put on notice it’s time to pick it up,” Collins said before Saturday’s game. “We have not scored. We have not hit. We went out and got two guys who we think have added some offense to us. I’m not going to leave them sitting on the bench. If they’re going to bring more offense than what we’ve got, they’re going to get in there somewhere.”

And so, the manager has lit a fire under his team. The General Manager has acquired new and better players, and he is most definitely continuing to shop for more. Both of these moves by the manager and GM are healthy and wise. Perhaps these guys needed this competition for rejuvenation?

Time will be the ultimate tell.